


Up In The Woods.

by dearsnart



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Abduction, Dark, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Kidnapping, M/M, Murderers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:35:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22632787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dearsnart/pseuds/dearsnart
Summary: Barry gave a man a forced smile, and nodded. “Yeah, I'm sure. But thanks, anyways.” He replied politely, then resumed his calm walking pace. He was a little creeped out, but he wasn't worried, he could take care of himself. Besides, what are the chances, right? This guy was probably just trying to be nice.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 23





	1. Chapter 1

17th of March, 1998.  
9:02 pm.

And there it was. The sound that every person in their sane minds dreaded. The sound of a car slowing down next to the sidewalk, right where you were walking. Not to mention that it was the middle of the night. It was dark outside, with barely anyone around. 

“Hey, kid.” The man from behind the wheel called out. When did he roll down his window? Or was it already rolled down in the first place? Was he prepared? Maybe. “Need a ride home?”

Barry wasn't stupid. His foster dad was a cop, a detective. He wasn't going to hop into a stranger's car, just because he offered candy, or a ride home. Joe taught him to be scared, because being scared and running off often saved many people's lives in situations like this.

But Barry didn't run. He wasn't going to get in, but he wasn't going to be rude, either. He slowed down on his walking pace, then came to a stop a second later. He didn't move closer to the car, he just stayed on the sidewalk, a safe distance away from the car. “No, but thank you, sir. I live close by. I'll just walk.” He replied, before giving the man a small, polite smile.

The guy seemed to be old. Not too old, per say, but old for a teenager. He was probably in his late fifties. If Barry had to guess, he would say that the guy was 58. He wasn't quite appealing. He had a clean-shaved face, but his hair really needed a cut. It looked greasy and greying; it reached a little above his shoulders. He had blue eyes, but from the lights surrounding him, they looked grey. His forehead looked too big, but that was just because of his hairline slowly fading back – due to his age. 

The man's lips tugged up into a friendly smile. “You sure? I mean, I'm pretty sure it's gonna rain any minute now.”

Barry gave a man a forced smile, and nodded. “Yeah, I'm sure. But thanks, anyways.” He replied politely, then resumed his calm walking pace. He wasn't creeped out. He wasn't worried, he could take care of himself. Besides, what are the chances, right? This guy was probably just trying to be nice. 

“Alright, then. Have a nice evening.” The man stepped on the gas, only to stop a few second later. His car was now ahead of Barry, so he poked his head out the window, and looked back at the teen. “Hey, I know that this is probably going to sound stupid, but don't I know you?”

The brunet stopped once again, and furrowed his eyebrows. He had no clue who this man was, honestly. “Uh, well... no?”

The man narrowed his eyes, clearly falling deep into thought. He just sat there for a few seconds, before raising his eyebrows. “Yea', I do! I do! God, how could I forget! I know your dad! I used to be friends with him! Hell, I saw you years ago, you were much younger, so I don't blame you if you don't remember. But I knew it! I knew that there was something so familiar about your face!” He sounded cheerful, excited to finally have figured out where he knew that face from.

And that was it. That was all Barry needed to hear. 

He walked closer to the car, eyes slightly widening in disbelief. “Wait, really? You really know him?” He asked. The innocence was dripping in his voice. He was truly too pure for this world. The way his face lit up at the mention of his father showed how much he cared about his dad, and how long he would go just to have someone admit that he's innocent. 

“Hell yeah!” The man chuckled out. “He used to talk to me a lot about you. 'Was really proud of his kiddo. See, I had to leave the city all those years ago. My wife got sick, and she needed special care in another city, y'know. This city didn't have the medical care she needed, so I just left everything behind. Wouldn't say I regret it. Hell, I'd do it again. I loved my baby. But up until this day, I think about my buddy a lot. Your dad was a really good friend to me, y'know. I'm just sad that it all ended because of me. I came back to the city like a month ago, and I was like, hell, if I'm here I might as well just apologize for leaving so quickly. I tried contacting him the other day, but he hasn't responded yet.” 

Barry was drinking the man's words. He believed every single one of those statements. After hearing about his father, he completely blocked all of his worries out, and ignored that weird feeling in his gut. This man was his dad's friend, so he was a good man. He had to be. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been friends. “Yeah, that's– he's not really going to respond soon.” He mumbled, and looked down at the pavement. He slipped his hands into the pockets of his jacket.

“Oh, God.” The man's face fell, and his eyes widened with genuine concern. “Don't tell me that he's...” 

The boy quickly shook his head. “No. No, he's not. It's just... it's– it's a long story.” He replied quietly. He still refused to look up. Keeping his eyes on the pavement seemed like a good way to keep his emotions at bay. 

The guy looked down, and slowly nodded his head. “You know, I got all the time in the world right now, kid. I'm not in a rush, I was just at the grocery store. And 'ey, no pressure. But I'd like to hear more about your dad. I can still take 'ya home. Maybe you could help me catch up during the ride.”

Barry let out a long sigh, and glanced around himself. It was always difficult to talk about what happened, but perhaps this man could help. Maybe he would take his side on this, because friends got each other's back. “Okay. Yeah, that... that would be nice.” He finally looked back at the man. 

The guy gave an empathic smile. “Hop in, then.” 

Barry did. He got into the man's car, and sat down in the passenger's seat, with a tiny smile. As he was buckling up his seatbelt, he spoke again. “Thanks for the ride.”

“Oh, please. Thanks for the opportunity. Been thinking about him a lot lately, and it will be good to finally know how life's treating him.” He replied calmly. He rolled up his window, and began driving again. “Where do you live now, kid?”

The brunet leaned back in the seat with a small sigh. “Um, Whitset Avenue.” 

“Alright, then. So tell me, what's your name again? I used to know, but it's been quite a while. It's, uhh...”

“Barry,” the teen replied with a smile. “It's Barry. And yours, sir?” 

The man let out a small chuckle. “Noo, no, let's skip the sir. I'm just Jack for you. Or Jacko, as your father used to call me.” 

“Well, it's nice to meet you, Jack. I'm glad that I met one of dad's friends today. After what happened with him, all of his friends just... vanished. They stopped caring.” He explained, his voice slowly trailing off as he recalled all those memories. 

Jack glanced over at the boy, and just gazed at him for a few seconds. The expression that was on his face in that very moment was unreadable. One would say worry. The other might say hunger. “Tell me about your dad, Barry.”


	2. Chapter 2

18th of March, 1998.  
6:45 pm.

Joe held up a finger, and pointed it at the man standing in front of him. “If you think that you can just have me stand aside, and just patiently wait for you to find my son, you are out of your mind, David. You're a good man, and I trust you, but there is absolutely no way that I am stepping back from this. Barry is my kid. My responsibility. I don't care about the rules, I am going to take part in this investigation, like it or not.” He growled in a low, menacing tone. 

Captain Singh let out a small sigh, and rubbed his forehead in a stressed manner. “Joe, listen. You know the rules. If you have personal connection to this case, you can't help us investigate. I'm not asking you to calm down, I know that's impossible right now. All I ask for, is a little faith. We have good men here, Joe. I'm going to lead this investigation, and we are going to do everything in our power, and even more. But I can't let you in on this case.”

“Bullshit.” Joe spat out, befor taking a menacing step closer. “I am not asking for permissions, David. I am telling you, that I am going to look for my son. If you don't let me help you, fine. I'll do it on my own off the records, but if that's the case, I can't promise you that I will keep my hands clean.” He replied, voice still in that low tone. 

David sat back down in his chair behind his desk, and ran a hand down his face. He glanced off to the side, and gazed out of the window for a few seconds, before speaking up again. His voice was serious, like he was trying to warn his old friend to take it easy. “Okay. Alright, you're in. For now. But if I see you getting agressive with a suspect, or with anyone at all, I won't hesitate to kick you out of this search. Alright?”

Joe's shoulders slumped down a little bit, losing that tense positure. He slightly clenched his jaw, then dipped his head into a nod. “Thank you.” He said quietly, before walking out of the captain's office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that this one is shorter, but a longer chapter will be posted soon.


	3. Chapter 3

25th of March.  
3:42 pm.

“What– what exactly am I looking at?” David questioned in a calm tone, as he looked down at the worn out piece of paper that West just dropped down onto his desk. “And why are you panting?”

“That–” Joe breathed out, his chest rising and falling quickly. Did he run here? “It's a lead. That paper. I found it in front of my door, it's Barry. He's letting us know where he is. So get the units, and let's go.” 

“Woah, slow down. Joe. Take it easy. Are you sure about this?” Singh asked slowly. He picked up the paper, and watched it for a second, before looking back up at Joe. “Listen, this– this sounds crazy. Okay? And normally, I wouldn't just rush ahead and trust this paper, but it's Barry that we're talking about. And every small cue needs to be checked out. But I need to know that you'll keep your calm, and won't run ahead. You'll come with us, okay?”

Joe gave a nod, then picked up the piece of paper, then hurried out of the office, to gather up officers for the search. 

The paper itself looked ripped. It looked worn out, and even dirty. The words on it were all in capital letters, and the writing seemed a little shaky, but at the same time, determined. There were five simple words on it, but they were enough to make one shiver.

“I'm up in the woods.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be longer. Also, comments are apperciated.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the chapter that gets graphic, just a warning.

28th of March.  
10:42 pm.

“Copy that.” Robert said calmly, before releasing the button on his shoulder radio. He paused for a second, and looked up at the dark, night sky, sighing. It was getting late. The captain just informed him that they get thiry more minutes, and then they would have to wrap it up. 

Many civils joined the search, but they were sent home about two hours ago. The captain didn't want to risk a citizen's safety out in the forest at night. Now, it was about 12 officers out in the forest, looking for the missing teen boy. They had split up, so that they could speed up the searching process. However, they were also informed that this might ne a trap. The message that was sent to the boy's dad seemed... off. Sure enough, it was worth a try. But it raised a lot of questions. How could that Allen boy send that paper piece to Joe's door, if he was truly up here in the woods? It was confusing.

Robert looked back down, and shook away his train of thoughts. He had to stay focused. This could be dangerous. He raised his flashlight again, and continued walking. The leaves and the dry branches softly cracked and crunched under his boot, as he made his way deeper and deeper into the forest.

He was accompanied by the sounds of owls, crickets, and crows as well. The crowds were flying up above, only cawing every now and then. As the wind blew, the leaves on the trees kept making soft noises, and if one listened for long enough, they might start to think that the trees were whispering to each other. 

Robert wasn't the type to get easily scared. In fact, he had been told to be more cautious. He was always the first one to go in, not afraid of anything. Surely, he had things that he was afraid of. But when he was out on the field, wearing the badge, he hardly ever cared. He couldn't afford to be scared out here. Not when every day, people's lives were at stake. 

But something about this forest made his skin crawl. He couldn't point out what was the reason of that heavy feeling in his chest, but something felt off. The whole place had a negative vibe, and even the animals sounded weird. Like they knew what was going on. It was a dumb thing to think, or so he thought. Animals couldn't talk. He was probably just getting tired. 

A sudden noise of a leaf loudly crunching was heard. 

Robert froze for only a second, before whipping out his gun, and turning around, facing the source of the sound. 

It was just a crow, standing there behind Robert, and staring up at him.

“Shit...” the officer softly cursed, and lowered his gun, sliding it back into it's holster. He frowned down at the black bird, but said animal wasn't moving. It was staring at Robert so intensely, like he was daring him. Normally, he would've laughed it off, but this crow didn't seem to be normal. Crows never got too close to humans. 

Furrowing his eyebrows, Robert stepped closer to the crow, but he got no reaction from it. “Oh, come on. Quit staring at me.” He complained quietly, before kicking some dirt at the bird.

Still not moving. 

Robert stared down at the crow for a few seconds, before shaking his head. He didn't have time for this. He turned back around, and continued walking in the original direction. That stupid crow made him feel uneasy. He glanced back, and directed the flashlight at the bird, who was still just standing there. Frowning, Robert decided to just forget about it, and keep going.

For the next fifteen minutes nothing happened. The officer kept searching, but he could barely see anything at this point, it was so dark. The flashlight wasn't helping too much. It was much easier to search in the daylight when he could see everything.

He decided that if he doesn't find anything in the next five minutes, he would head back. He doubted that he would find anything at this point.

Robert kept walking, and just when he was nearing those five minutes, his eyes landed on something. Once again, he found himself facing a crow, just standing there and staring ahead. “Come on...” he muttered softly. What was wrong with the crows in this damn forest? Or was it the same bird from before. 

“What do you want? Huh? I don't have bread on me, or any type of food. Mind your own business.” It was stupid, talking to a bird. It obviously couldn't respond, but it just bothered Robert so much that it was just blankly staring. 

The crow didn't move. Robert was about to go and shoo it away and out of his way when the bird suddenly flew up, and towards the officer at an impossible speed. He went straight for Robert's face, and began trashing around with it's wings, trying to tear out a lock of hair from the man with it's beak. It was attacking. 

Robert cursed, and stumbled back, and after a few failed attempts, he managed to hit the crow, shoving it away from his face. In doing so, he lost his balance, and fell on his back, dropping the flashlight from his hand. 

“Goddamnit. Stupid bird.” He complained quietly. He looked up, but the crow was long gone. Robert just sat there for a few seconds, wondering what caused the animal to get so violent all of a sudden, before shaking his head. He's seen enough. He was heading back now. He looked down at his flashlight, and just when he was about to grab it, he froze.

He could feel his blood running cold. He paled, and just stared, completely frozen. Even his breath was stuck in his throat. “Fuck–” he whispered, before hurriedly grabbing his flashlight, and standing up on unsteady legs. 

And there he was. 

Staring at the pale, lifeless body of a teen boy. Robert recognized him immediately. He had been so devoted to this case, how could he forget this face? 

Barry Allen.  
The boy who went missing eleven days ago. It's been almost two weeks, and surely, one would expect to only find a body by now, but the message...

He was laying there, completely naked. His body was pale, and lazily covered in dirt, probably from the wind. There was a dry leaf stuck in his brown locks, and he was just... staring. At nothing. His hazel eyes looked so horribly empty, and his pale lips were slightly parted. He was covered in bruises, but the most noticable one was around his neck.

Robert didn't have to be a genius to be able to tell that the boy was suffocated. Choked to death. He couldn't tell with what, but it must have been some kind of rope.

“Fuck–” He choked out, and turned around, bringing his hand up to cover his mouth. Without any explaination, he found himself letting out a disgusted sob. He was just fucking seventeen. He had his whole life ahead of him, and there he was, laying naked, and lifeless in a dark forest. 

Robert took lots of deep breaths. It took him a good five minutes to calm down, but once he collected himself enough, he rubbed a shaky hand over his face, then reached up to his shoulder, and held down the button on his radio. “Officer Darren here. I found him.” He stated quietly. His voice was filled with sorrow.

A second later, his radio clicked, and Captain Singh's voice was heard. “Is he alive?” The man's voice held fear. He probably knew the answer by now. He hesrd Robert's voice, he knew what it meant.

Robert swallowed, and took a few seconds to collect himself, before holding down the button once again. “No. He's dead.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoyed, please comment, because I can easily get uninspired:(


End file.
